Grease-cup.



No. 792,858. PATENTED JUNE 20, 1905. W. E. S. STRONG, G. I. OVERTON & G.G. SGHOBNBORN.

GREASE CUP.

APPLICATION FILED 11111.13. 1904.

m 'zeasss.

UNTTED STATES l/VILLIAM E. S. STRONG, OF

AND GUSTAV C. SCHOENBORN. OF

ORS TO THE WVINKLEY COMPANY,

CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

Patented June 20, 1905.

PATENT Fries.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AND CARL I. OVERTON GREASE-CUP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 792,858, dated June 20,1905.

Application filed January 13,

To roll. III/1.0177. it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM E. S. STRONG, a resident of Chicago, in thecounty of Cook and State of Illinois, and CARL I. Ovnn'ron 5 and GUs'rAvC. SCIIOENBORN, residents of Hartford, in the county of Hartford andState of Connecticut, all citizens of the United States, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Grease-Cups, of which the Ifollowing is a full, clear, and exact specification.

his invention relates to improvements in that class of grease and oilcups and similar devices having a contractible reservoir from which thelubricant is forced out from time to time, as required, by screwing downa cap or cover arranged to contract the interior space.

This improvement is specially suited for use on motor vehicles and forsimilar uses in which the movable cap or cover is liable to be unscrewedand lost by the shaking or jarring movements incident to its use.

The object of this invention is to provide means for avoiding thisliability, while permitting the cover or reservoir to be easily screweddown and, although by a greater effort, to be unscrewed again to refillwith grease.

Although this invention is applicable to many forms of devices, it isherein shown as applied to a common form of grease-cup.

Figure 1 of the drawings is a side view of theimproved grease-cup, shownpartly in section, taken through its longitudinal center.

Fig. 2 is a plan View in section, taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, thereservoir or cover being omitted. Fig. 3 is a side view of the baseportion of the cap, showing the screw-thread- 4 ed exterior. Fig. iis aplan view in section, taken in the plane of the top of the packingring,showing a modification of that packingring and the means for keeping itin place.

The reservoir 11, which contains the grease,

is threaded on the inside to receive the base 12, which thus confinesthe grease within the 31, and the washe tegral piece to fit t 1904.Serial No- 188,885

reservoir and permits its escape only through the hole 13, provided forthat purpose. hexagon portion 16 and a threaded portion 17 provide forsecuring the cup in its desired 5 place. An occasional forward turn ofthe reservoir 11 screws it down and keepsthe grease crowded down intothe hole 13, ready to be absorbed as fast as wanted. The threaded collar14 of the base supports the packingring 31 and a shoulder above thatsupports the washer 21, the latter serving to keep the ring 31 down onits seat and being itself held in place by the riveting or spinning overof the base-top at 15. The collar 14, the ring r 21 are threaded as aninhe inside thread of the reservoir 11, and thus each forms a portion ofthe threaded joint.

The packing-ring 31, which may be of metal, vegetable fiber, or anyother suitable material, is preferably of rectangular cross-section,filling the space between the collar 14 and the washer 21 and is cutthrough at 32, thus permitting it to expand and contract. It is looselysecured to the base 12 by the retaining-pins 33 and 3 1, appurtenant tothe base. The holes in the ring through which the pins 33 and 34 projectare so placed and proportioned that the pin 33 prevents the cor- 7 5 nor36 and the adjacent portion of the ring from springing outside of thecircle of the nominal diameter, so that that corner fits the interiorthreaded wall of the reservoir or cover 11 without pressing outwardlyagainst it with any degree of retarding friction, whereas the remainingportion of the ring terminating at the corner 35 is free to springoutwardly against the interior wall of the reservoir, the pin 34 servingto prevent an undue amount of expansion during the backward movement ofthe reservoir. The cut 32 is preferably inclined in a tangentialrelation to the ring to facilitate being closed by the contractingmovement, the arrangement and relation of the parts shown in the figuresbeing suited for a right-handed thread.

The tendency of the ring to expand is preferably imparted by making itof slightly larger diameter, so that the screwing on of the cap orreservoir will contract it, this contraction serving also to practicallyclose the cut 32, and thus prevent the leaking of the grease, the widthof the cut 32 being adapted to the movement of contraction. In Figs. 2and 4 the ring is shown in its expanded condition, whereas in Figs. 1and 3 the ring is shown in its contracted condition, conforming to thesize of the threaded collar 14 and washer 21. The threading of the ringis preferably done while in position on the base, as shown in Fig. 3,since this method better insures a good-fitting joint and insures moreperfect coincidence with the spiral of the adjacent threads of thecollar 14 and the washer 21.

The tendency of the contracted ring to expand against and around theinterior wall of the reservoir 11 causes friction between the ring andthat wall, so that the movement of rotating the reservoir in eitherdirection upon the thread tends to carry the ring with it. The pins 34and 33 prevent the ring from rotating, at least beyond a limited extent,while permitting the expansion of all portions of the ring, exceptingthat adjacent to the pin 33. When the reservoir is turned in thedirection of the arrow 38, its frictional contact with the ring tends tocontract the ring, and hence the resistance is only that due to theresiliency of the ring; but when the reservoir is turned in thedirection of the arrow 39 to unscrew the cover the friction between thefree end of the ring and the interior wall of the reservoir tends toexpand the ring, thereby greatly increasing the frictional resistance tothe turning movement over that offered by the mere resiliency of thering. This resistance is not great enough to be of any inconvenience inunscrewing the reservoir, but is sufficient to prevent its jarring loosethrough the vibrations of the mechanism to which it may be attached.Thus the ring serves as a species of frictional ratchet, imposing only amoderate amount of resistance to the screwing down of the reservoir, butoffering a greatly increased resistance to the backward turning of thereservoir, thus preventing it from beingunintentionally unscrewed by anyjarring or shaking movements incident to its use. Moreover, the tendencyto expand takes up the wear on the thread, thus keeping the parts insatisfactory working order even after hard and continued use.

As a means of further reducing the liability of the reservoir to becomeunscrewed by the jarring or shaking of the vehicle or the mechanism uponwhich it is used the reservoir 11 is fitted somewhat loosely upon thecollar 14 and washer 21, and the ring 31 is also fitted to turn freelyin its seat to a limited extent, permitted by making the pins 33 and 34slightly smaller than their respective holes in the ring. This limitedextent of free movement enables the reservoir and its ring to absorbpractically all the vibrations, which otherwise might tend to move thereservoir with relation to the ring, and thus screw down or unscrew thereservoir. Moreover, this limited amount of free rotative movement ofthe ring with the reservoir carries the threads of the ring slightly outof lead with the threads of the collar 14 and washer 21 when moved fromthe relative position in which they were threaded. When, as ispreferably the case, the parts are threaded with a die, with the ring 31in position, as shown in Fig. 3, the ring will be rotated to the forwardlimit of its position by the die while being cut, and hence will be inproper lead when in this position. Similarly the forward turning of thecover 11 will carry it to this forward-limit position, and, being incorrect lead at this position, will offer the least resistance to theforward screwing movement of the cover; but the backward turning of thecover will carry the threads of the ring out of lead with the threads ofthe collar 14 and the washer 21, and thus increase the resistance tothat backward movement in addition to the increased resistance caused bythe expanding of the ring hereinbefore described.

The size and position of the pin 34 is such as to prevent such an amountof expansion of the free portion of the ring as would prevent thereservoir from being unscrewed when it is desired to open and refill thecup.

It is not an essential feature of this invention that the exterior ofthe packing-ring be threaded to form apart of the threaded joint, sinceit may be used in connection with a plain or unthreaded portion of theexterior wall of a cup. The tendency to contract the ring by turning thecover or reservoir in one direction and to expand the ring by turning itin the other direction would be present, although in a somewhat lessdegree in such a plain or unthreaded ring and cover. It is obvious alsothat the arrangement herein shown may be reversed or inverted, theinverted reservoir 11 being provided with the threaded stem forattachment to the bearing and the collar 14, with its packing-ring 31and washer 21, being screwed down inside of the reservoir to forcegrease therefrom; but the arrangement herein shown and described ispreferred, since it is more efi ective in operation and offers lessopportunity for the lodgment of dirt.

In the modified construction shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the ring 41 is heldin place on the base 12 by the notch 25, which receives two pro jections42 and 43, formed at the ends of the ring 41 on the opposite sides ofthe cut 44. When the ring is of this form, it is made or sprung so thatit will assume the required shape with the corner 46 projectingoutwardly beyond the corner 45 when the piece is at rest. It may then bedropped into place and the Lil washer 21 secured above it, after whichthe threading operation may take place, as before described.

In the arrangement shown in Fig. 2 one or both of the apertures of thering 31, through which the pins 33 and 34 project, may be slotted orelongated in suitable directions for permitting or con'ipelling therequired movements of the respective ends of the ring due to contractionand expansion, the slot for the pin 34 being in that case inclined tocoincide with the outward movement of the ring as it expands. In somecases where the dimensions or proportions and the resiliency of the ringcan be made to conform closely to the requirements the pin Set and itsassociated aperture or slot can be dispensed with; but it is pref erableto regulate and limit the contracting and expanding action of the ringsubstantially as shown herein, and for economy of manufacture it ispreferable to make the apertures for the pins 33 and 34 circular insteadof elongated, since they can thus be made by a drill or reamer.

The terms outward, inward, expanding, contracting, and similar termsdenoting position or movement are herein used in their relative and notnecessarily in their absolute sense, inasmuch as the parts orarrangements may be reversed, inverted, or transposed in many ways tosuit various conditions of service. For example, for some purposes thethreaded packing-ring may be appurtenant to and carried by the reservoiror screw-down portion of the cup, with the threads upon its interiorinstead of its exterior, in which case the ring should be madeself-contracting instead of self-expanding, as is herein shown anddescribed. It should also be observed that this self-adjusting ring ismade to serve the two functions of forming the packing in the screw-downjoint to prevent the grease from being forced out from that joint and ofconstituting a friction detent device to retain the respective parts inthe positions to which they may be moved, and particularly to preventunscrewing or backward movement of the screw-down or movable part. Forthe performance of this latter function alone it is not essential thatthe ring should be threaded or form any part of the threaded joint,since it could with a fair degree of efficiency be employed in a plainor unthreaded portion of the joint; but for greatest efliciency,combined with simplicity and cheapness, it is in connection with theparticular type of grease-cup herein shown and described preferablyadapted to combine both of these functions.

\Ve claim as our invention 1. The combination in an oil or grease cup,of a threaded m ember for contracting the cupspace, and a self-expandingdetent-ring eooperating with the said member to prevent backwardmovement while permitting continued forward movement thereof.

2. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a screw-down member forcontracting the cu p-space,and a self-expanding thread ed packing-ringinterposed in the threaded joint of the screw-down member, topreventbackward 4. The combination in an oil or grease cup,

of two members threaded to screw together to contract the cup-space, anda self-expanding contractible detent-ring interposed in the jointbetween the two members, whereby the ring is expanded by the turningmovement which diminishes the cup-space, and contracted by the turningmovement which increases the cup-space.

I 5. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of two members threaded toscrew together to contract the cup-space, a resilient self-expandingthreaded packing and detent ring interposed in the threaded jointbetween the two members, whereby the ring is expanded by the turningmovement which diminishes the cup-space and contracted by the turningmovement which increases the cup-space.

6. The combination with an oil or grease cup, of an annular expansiblepacking-ring cut through one side, and means for holding the adjacentcut ends to enable them to expand outwardly to different radialdistances.

7. The combination with an oil or grease cup, of an annular expansiblepacking-ring cut through at one side, and means appurtenant to the cupfor supporting the ring on the cup with one of its out ends free toexpand outwardly beyond the other cut end.

8. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of two members mounted torotate, one within the other, an annular expansible packingring cutthrough at one side, and interposed in the joint between the twomembers, and means for sustaining the ring to permit one of its out endsto expand outwardly beyond the other end.

9. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of two members threaded toscrew one within the other,an expansible packing-ring threaded upon itsperiphery and cut through at one side and mounted on one of the membersin the threaded joint between the two members, and means for limitingthe movement of the ring relative to the member on which it is mountedwhile permitting one of its cut ends to expand outwardly beyond theother end.

10. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a reservoir member, amember adapted to screw within the reservoir and contract its space, anexpansible packing-ring interposed in the threaded joint between the twomembers, having its periphery threaded, and being cut through at oneside to permit the adjacent ends to expand separately, and means forlimiting the expansion of one end to the approximate diameter of thethreaded joint while permitting the further expansion of the other end.

11. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a base member and acover member fitted together with a screw-joint, an expansiblepacking-ring seated in the inner member and provided with a peripheralscrew-thread form ing a part of the joint, means for securing the ringto limit its rotation in its seat while permitting the expansion of oneend of the ring to a greater radius than the other.

12. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a reservoir member andanother member fitted thereto with a screw-joint, an expansiblepacking-ring cut through at one side, and interposed in the joint, andhaving a threaded portion forming part of said joint, means for limitingthe rotation of the ring in its seat while leaving one of the cut endsof the ring free to expand outwardly against the threads of the othermember, whereby the free portion of the ring is contracted when themembers are screwed in one direction, and expanded by screwing in theopposite direction.

13. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a reservoir member, andanother member fitted thereto with a screw-joint for contracting thereservoir-space, an expausible ring cut through at one side and seatedupon one of the members with its peripheral surface threaded to form apart of the threaded joint between the two members, and means forsecuring the ring in its seat to permit a limited amount of freerotative movement therein, whereby the vibrations which would tend tounscrew the joints are absorbed by the free movement.

1 1. The combination in a grease or oil cup, of two members screwed onewithin the other, an expansible packing-ring with its periphery threadedto form a part of the threaded joint between the two members, one sideof the ring being cut through in a tangential relation, and means forseating the ring upon one of the members with the end of the ringoutside of the tangential cut free to spring outwardly away from theother end.

15; The combination in an oil or grease cup, of a base member and acover member fitted together with a threaded joint, a self-expansiblepacking-ring seated on the base member and having its periphery threadedto form a part of its threaded joint, and a Washer also threaded uponits periphery'to form a part of the said threaded joint, and serving toconfine the packing-ring against longitudinal movement while permittingrotative movement.

16. The combination in an oil or grease cup, of two members fittedtogether with a screwjoint, an expansible packing-ring cut through atone side and interposed in the joint, and having a threaded portionformingpart of said joint, and pins appurtenant to the ring-seatengaging with apertures in the ring adjacent to and on opposite sides ofthe separating-cut, the ring being loose upon said pins to permit alimited amount of rotative and expanding movement of the ring.

Signed at Hartford, Connecticut, this 5th day of January, 1904:.

WILLIAM E. S. STRONG. CARL I. OVERTON. GUSTAV C. SCHOENBORN.

Witnesses:

WM. H. Homes, JAs. WV. GREEN.

